Top Law Schools

Hello all,
Recently recieved my June LSAT score of 165, but have managed only a 3.3 gpa from UW Madison (non URM). I'm fairly intent on the Chicago market, however realising that Northwestern and UIUC are out of the question i feel stuck. I wish UW Madison's law program placed better in chicago, but from my discussions with the career advisors it just doesn't seem to be the best option.
Here is my application list so far:

Stretch:
Boston College
Fordham
UIUC
Notre Dame

More Confident:
UW Madison
Indiana Bloomington

Given:
Kent
Loyola Chicago

How well does a school like Notre Dame or indiana place in Chicago? My worry is that they won’t place much better than Madison. I hate to relegate myself to a 70+ ranked school when I have a shot at better ones, but would this be my best option?

Do I have a legitimate shot at Notre Dame, BC, or Fordham? Any other suggestions for schools to apply to?

I won’t be re-taking the LSAT because I will not be in the country.

Thanks,

LSP gives you a better shot at UIUC than Notre Dame, FWIW.

I think you've got some good schools on your list and you know pretty much where you stand. I suspect you'll get into your "more confident" schools and will probably need to really make sure your application is wonderful to crack your reach schools.

When it is all said and done, I can see you having to make a financial decision: How much more are you willing to pay for Wisconsin/Indiana than for Kent/Loyola? I'd rather go to WI/Indiana than the others, but that's me.

Clearly the best school for Chicago where you have a fighting chance at admission is Illinois. Make a trip to Champaign, meet with Dean Pless, talk to him about Illinois' placement statistics and programs, and make sure he knows the school is your top choice.

Dean Pless has said (I think it's in his interview) that he's far more likely to admit someone with lower numbers but an otherwise compelling application early in the cycle, because he'll have more time to balance out the numbers hit the profile will take from their admission. The takeaway: Apply as early as possible.

Good luck!

Backer2 wrote:Hello all,
Recently recieved my June LSAT score of 165, but have managed only a 3.3 gpa from UW Madison (non URM). I'm fairly intent on the Chicago market, however realising that Northwestern and UIUC are out of the question i feel stuck. I wish UW Madison's law program placed better in chicago, but from my discussions with the career advisors it just doesn't seem to be the best option.
Here is my application list so far:

Stretch:
Boston College
Fordham
UIUC
Notre Dame

More Confident:
UW Madison
Indiana Bloomington

Given:
Kent
Loyola Chicago

How well does a school like Notre Dame or indiana place in Chicago? My worry is that they won’t place much better than Madison. I hate to relegate myself to a 70+ ranked school when I have a shot at better ones, but would this be my best option?

Do I have a legitimate shot at Notre Dame, BC, or Fordham? Any other suggestions for schools to apply to?

I won’t be re-taking the LSAT because I will not be in the country.

Thanks,

unrealistic reaches:
UIUC, BC, BU, fordham, and ND

targets:
Wisconsin

strong target:
IU-B

safety:
kent, loyola chicago

you'll likely get nothing from wisconsin, 45k from indiana, 60k from kent, and 30-40k from loyola.